I am not usually a gluttonous person, except when it comes to chocolate. And after a hard week, I was ready for good chocolate and lots of it. I don’t care if my satisfaction is worldly and fleeting, because this was a heavenly weekend for a chocolate lover.

It started Friday night. After a long week, my girlfriend Teresa and I decided to stay in to try our hand at making chocolate fondue, which I was pleased to discover was among the easiest and most delicious desserts to make. A fondue pot also makes serving fondue a little easier, but it is not necessary.

To start making the fondue, melt the chocolate in a thick-bottomed saucepan. Once the chocolate has melted, add the other ingredients and gently stir until they are well blended, and it’s ready to serve. If you have a fondue pot, pour in the chocolate and serve. If not, you can use a bowl. The chocolate will likely harden as it cools, but you can always pop the bowl into a nearby microwave for a couple of seconds to soften the chocolate.

Fondue is great to share with a group of friends, or as a romantic desert for two. But, if you make it for two as Teresa and I did, you will discover that you have substantial leftovers, regardless of your appetite for chocolate. Don’t let this chocolate go to waste. We found that it makes great chocolate covered strawberries to enjoy later. Simply dip strawberries in the chocolate while it is still warm, place them individually on a baking sheet covered in aluminum foil, and place in the refrigerator to cool.

Teresa and I enjoyed the strawberries throughout Valentine’s Day, but somehow we hadn’t quite had our fill. Instead of going out for dinner that night, I cooked at home. And knowing that the best way to win a girl’s heart is yet more chocolate, for dessert I made “Orgasmic” Chocolate Mousse (so named by Teresa). This mousse was by far one of the best desserts that I have had at home or eating out, and though it takes patience, as far as skill level, it is very easy to make and is guaranteed to be a huge success with chocolate lovers.

To start, melt chocolate in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over low heat, stirring frequently. Next, pour in the espresso and stir in Grand Marnier, and let the mixture at room temperature. Add the egg yolks one at a time, stirring thoroughly after each. Now comes the difficult part. With a whisk, beat the cream until it is stiff, gradually adding sugar. In a separate bowl, also with a whisk, beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until they form stiff peaks. (Make sure that the bowl and whisk are very clean and dry, or it will be difficult to get the egg whites to peak.) Then, gently fold the egg whites into the cream.

After beating all these ingredients, your arm will be ready to fall off, but fear not, because there’s an end in sight. To finish, add 1/3 of the cream mixture to the chocolate, and stir thoroughly. Then, pour the remaining cream over the chocolate and fold in. Pour this mixture into individual dishes or a large serving bowl and place in the refrigerator to set for no less than two hours. This recipe, adapted from the New Basics cookbook makes approximately six to eight servings.

One final word of warning: Once you get a taste of the apple, it’s hard to turn back. This mousse will definitely lead to gluttony, and, as its name suggests, it can lead you down the path to other deadly sins. But you’re left to explore on your own.

Fondue
12 oz. high-quality chocolate chips
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
3 tablespoons Kahlua liqueur
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Orange zest to taste
Various dippers: We used kiwi, apples, apricots and pound cake

Mousse
24 oz. semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup brewed espresso coffee
1/2 cup Grand Marnier
4 egg yolks, 8 egg whites
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup sugar
Pinch of salt

Popularity: unranked [?]

 Print This Post

This entry was posted on Monday, February 16th, 2004 at 12:00 pm and is filed under Cadenza. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.